Mana Soul: Chapter 51 - The Cabal - Peabody

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Standing by the window of the meeting room, Peabody watched the rain patter against the glass with a sense of looming foreboding. A cursory analysis of the Adventurer Guild’s records had confirmed suspicions that the world was entering the final stage of preparation for invasion and acquisition. Powerful dungeons were beginning to open at a rate the Guild could no longer handle, resulting in civilian deaths and somewhat ironically driving more of the populace towards the presumed safety of the walls and towns, accelerating the rate of dungeon appearances in those areas.

According to Peabody’s own calculations, farmlands would be lost en masse within the next six months. Once the farmlands were lost, the Southern Kingdom, Northern Princedoms and Eastern Empire would begin to collapse. The nobility and royalty would do their best to hoard the dwindling food supply, but without means of closing the dungeons, it would only delay the inevitable.

Meanwhile, the common people would die in droves, either from starvation or the monsters skulking out of the uncontested portals.

Of course, there was a way to stop the deaths from occurring in the first place, an enchantment. Discovered by the benefactor relatively recently, it was possible to trick the homing enchantment of the dungeon core by signalling a particular area as already occupied by another dungeon core.

Unfortunately, this did not fit with Peabody’s plans. For the people to accept the Creator as their true saviour, and willingly endorse the prosecution of the End War, sacrifices would need to be made. Besides sloughing off the established noble houses and royalty that might threaten his rule, the shared anguish and grief of the people would make their salvation all the more appreciated when it arrives.

Peabody was keenly aware of the moral implications of its intended actions and intended to accept the Creator’s judgement once the dust settled and his rule was firmly secured. To this end, Peabody had arranged a number of incidents to keep the Creator distracted.

The first distraction would materialise within a month. A coalition of ‘concerned’ nobles from the southern kingdom would attempt to aggressively apprehend the Creator and annex all of his acquired lands. Arlee’s biological father would be amongst their number, his tacit claim to Arlee serving as the excuse for hostilities. The coalition would lose, badly, serving as both a distraction and a proclamation to the established powers that the Creator was not to be trifled with.

The second distraction would be the culmination of months of tireless searching. The Badger had been found. Confirming her identity was still pending, but to Peabody, the Badger wasn’t hiding at all. She was brazenly declaring her identity to anyone who knew what they were looking for. It saddened Peabody to delay reuniting the Creator and Badger, but obeying the primary order required sacrifices.

The final distraction would be the conception of the Creator’s child. Depending on the effectiveness of the first two distractions, Peabody was prepared to metaphorically sit on the custom fertility treatment for two to three months. Mark had developed the treatment more than a month prior, shortly after the Creator’s first expression of interest. Peabody had hated itself for concealing the treatment from the Creator but consoled itself with the knowledge that the deception served a greater good.

Staring at its reflection in the window, Peabody was forced to acknowledge that as sophisticated a golem as it was, Peabody was still just a simulacrum of the original. The Creator discovering the puppet that now served as Peabody’s body was no coincidence. It was far too accurate to the appearance of the original to be anything but a deliberate attempt at indirect communication.

Peabody’s role was essential. Just as the original served a position as the Creator’s family broker, Peabody would make deals and support the Creator as best as it was able. This was Peabody’s burden and it required sacrifice.

Turning away from the window, Peabody took its place at the head of the lavish dining table and intertwined its fingers while patiently waiting for the thirty unconscious men and women tied to the seats on either side of the table to wake. They had been given a mild sedative roughly a half-hour earlier when they were each abducted from their places of business and homes.

Using the portal enchantments of the Creator, Peabody had abducted the heads of the most prominent and independently powerful merchant enterprises in the Southern Kingdom. No match for the financial might and connections of the Irongate family individually, the gathered men and women held close to ten times the might of the Irongate family when accounted for collectively.

As the gathered merchants began to stir, Peabody set aside its previous train of thought and focused on its upcoming presentation.

“Ladies and gentlemen, I must apologise for this unfortunate introduction.” Peabody bowed its head with a feigned smile of apology. “However, I firmly believe that once you have listened to my proposal, and had the opportunity to think on what I am offering, you will think much more favourably on this otherwise unfortunate act of necessity.”

“Act...of...necessity?...” Monroe growled, his walrus moustache quivering in rage as he attempted to rise from his chair. A golem dressed in servants' attire stationed behind him firmly pressed Monroe’s shoulders and firmly planted him back into his seat.

“Opportunity?” Galacia asked shrewdly, her mismatched hazel and sky-blue eyes immediately shifting to the closed folder of papers placed in front of her.

“Yes,” Peabody replied magnanimously, “To both your questions. The abduction was to ensure that our meeting would remain limited to just those invited. I apologise, Mr. Monroe, truly, but it was much safer this way. As for Mrs. Galacia, you will find rudimentary descriptions and a number of detailed illustrations that support the offer I will be extending to each of you tonight.”

The short exchange had caught the interest or otherwise resolved the remaining merchants to silence as they waited for Peabody to provide an explanation that would justify their abductions.

“I am sure I require no introduction, having met most of you personally already, which means you might have an inkling as to what I intend to offer,” Peabody smiled genially and motioned to the folders laid out on the table, “If you would each like to take a moment to quickly peruse the contents of your information packets, I will begin to explain the nature of my offer.”

Although some of the merchants grumbled, they were all curious enough to open the card folder and begin looking through the contents.

“As I am sure most of you would agree, the costs related to transporting goods from one place to another, and the related risks, are amongst the chief concerns of our profession. Yes?” Peabody opened its hands expansively and gave its audience a commiserating smile.

Murmurs and mumbling assent rippled up and down the table.

“So, in the entrepreneurial spirit of our profession, I have secured the means to eliminate both of these great blights in one fell swoop!” Peabody declared and clapped his hands together excitedly.

This declaration brought much more attention from the gathered merchants.

“All of you know of my Benefactor and of our business selling stored mana to the industrialists,” Peabody nodded at its own words and smiled, “So it should come as no true surprise that my Benefactor has made a number of additional breakthroughs in his field of artificing. One of which is the reason for your invitation this evening!”

“This drawing...You make it seem like you can just walk through one side of this giant door and appear somewhere else,” Julien demanded quietly.

Peabody’s smile broadened, “That’s a rather apt description for the practical elements of it,” the golem agreed.

The merchants collectively looked down at the picture and then back to Peabody.

“Mana fuelled portals in every major town and city throughout the Southern Kingdom and Northern Princedoms, allowing your goods to travel securely and near-instantaneously from one location to another. That is, of course, for a small handling fee,” Peabody winked lasciviously. Knowing the merchants wouldn’t be convinced with just words, the golem intended to perform a number of demonstrations before returning them to their homes.

“Let’s assume you aren’t lying, for the moment. What is in it for you? Why not just capitalise on the advantage and dominate the market?” Galacia inquired shrewdly.

Peabody had to resist grinning from ear to ear. “Because my Benefactor does not wish to remove the competition from the market and has no desire for monopoly beyond his own personal interests. As I am certain you all heard me state just a few moments ago, a fee will be charged for the privilege of these deliveries. Furthermore, a secondary exchange and opportunity for business will be presented to those who are willing.”

Galacia’s eyes flashed with opportunism, “What opportunities?”

“My Benefactor is making great strides in conquering the deadlands, carving out ever-greater territories with each passing day. However, he lacks willing colonists prepared to settle on the lands he has conquered.” Peabody motioned back to the information packets, “Each willing colonist recruited will afford your company a rate determined by the colonist’s age, sex, and marketable skills. There is an additional bonus for intact family units, cumulative with each family member corroborated by the Royal Registry. As you will find detailed under suggested recruitment targets, I prominently listed debtors as a prime recruitment source and a special case. My company will reimburse yours for debts paid, assuming the debtor agrees to become a colonist. It is also worth mentioning to potential candidates that they will be given a signing bonus to help get them started.”

Like a pack of hungry wolves, the merchants began eyeing Peabody like he was an abandoned lamb wandering the woods. If their situations were reversed, Peabody had no doubts whatsoever that every one of the merchants would use the advantage of the portals to strangle their opposition into a state of destitution or subservience.

After a short discussion where a number of merchants attempted to haggle over price and were threatened with expulsion from the deal in return, Peabody had the golems escort the merchants outside. A pavilion tent had been erected earlier in the day and would now allow the visiting merchants a relatively unobstructed view of the surrounding grounds.

Of course, it was all part of a great deception. Peabody wanted them to look upon the rows of warehouses and hastily erected rough timber fortifications and believe that if push came to shove, they would stand a chance at sieging the base for themselves.

The true exchange of goods, for the time being at least, would take place in a far larger warehouse underground. A large natural cavern repurposed specifically to serve as a nexus for trade out of the reach of power-hungry nobility.

“Assuming you agree and sign the charter, you will each be assigned two golems to serve as both bodyguards and point of contact for arranging the transportation of goods. Joining this mercantile cabal will also entitle each of you to ten Communication Tablets to enable long-distance communication between both one another and your chosen subordinates.” Peabody continued listing off the various advantages for joining the cabal, directing them towards those the golem knew would be most susceptible to each advantage or boon.

Much to Peabody’s surprise, not one of the merchants refused the offer of joining the cabal. It was a surprise because no less than twenty prominent merchants of the Northern princedoms had refused during the previous week, and were now dead.

As well as today's recruitment meeting had gone, Peabody sincerely doubted the Eastern Empire would be nearly as successful. The Lords and officials held an iron grip over almost all trade, and those were not the sort of people the golem wanted to be aware of the portals. Where the merchants saw profit, the Lords would only see a tool of conquest.

Peabody had only so much time available to establish evacuation sites and amass the necessary stockpiles of food for the survivors. The golem feared that more innocents must be sacrificed under the lamentable pretence of the greater good.

Unwilling to accept such inefficiency, Peabody turned its thoughts towards the rebel province. It could serve as a bulwark if necessary. In theory, it already possessed the necessary fortresses and fortifications. What it needed was supplies, and Peabody could provide that.

With its existing infrastructure and manpower, building a screening wall might be a possibility. The primary problem was whether the Empire’s soldiers would sit back and allow the walls to be built in the first place. That the province was able to stand so long in open rebellion was already quite impressive. However, the golems accompanying Tina Irongate had not seen much of the province’s defences besides the larger fortresses, so Peabody had very little information to work with.

After ordering a pair of golems accompanying Tina to remain behind as ‘gifts’ to the rebel Lord, Peabody sent Tina a lengthy message explaining the change in circumstances for her planned merchant fleet of airships.

Tina’s reply arrived within less than a minute.

[Lady Tina Irongate: “WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS?!!?!”]

[Lady Tina Irongate: “I HAVEN’T EVEN HAD A CHANCE TO MAKE THE RETURN TRIP AND SELL THE SUGAR YET!!!”]

[Lady Tina Irongate: “WHY?!?!?!!”]

[Peabody: “Did you read the rest of my message?”]

[Lady Tina Irongate: “YES!!!”]

[Lady Tina Irongate: “Maybe....”]

A couple of minutes passed.

[Lady Tina Irongate: “Sorry...”]

[Lady Tina Irongate: “Can I really build as many Airships as I want?”]

[Peabody: “Perhaps I should have led the message with that reassurance? Oh well. Apology accepted, lady Irongate. Provided you remain within the confines of the established budget and make the required alterations to the design to better serve as vessels of war? Yes, that is the intention behind the shift in resource allocation. I know it must have been quite a shock after all of the hard work and time you have invested in this project, so I apologise for my tactless delivery of the news.”]

[Lady Tina Irongate: “It’s fine! What changes to the ships were you thinking of?”]

Peabody did its best to provide requirements for both heavy and light ballista stations on the larger airships as well as a request for a medium-class of ship. The intention was for the medium class to serve as an interception craft against flying monsters, while the airboats would be relegated to scouting duties and the larger airships would be troop transports.

[Lady Tina Irongate: “On it!!!”]

Peabody was pleased by the young woman’s energy and felt glad that the Creator had managed to recruit such a talented individual.

Keenly aware that some of the new members of the cabal would want to try the Trade Portal Network, Peabody remotely contacted a golem inside of the warehouse office to lock onto his beacon and open Peabody’s personal portal.

Within a few moments, a shimmering doorway appeared a couple of feet in front of Peabody.

Stepping through the portal, Peabody gazed proudly upon the ornately decorated office. Designed with the intention of hosting members of the cabal or their lieutenants, no expense had been spared in projecting an air of garish taste and wealth. A stock of tea, wine, biscuits and assorted cheeses were kept in a small adjoining room so Peabody could offer refreshments to any guests.

Leaving the office, Peabody stepped out onto the paved warehouse floor. The northern members of the cabal were still busy transporting their final goods for the evening, trains of wagons slowly trundling from one end of the cavernous warehouse to the other.

The industrial portals had been aligned in such a way that all the waggon drivers would need to do is continue in a straight line in order to arrive at their predetermined destination. A lattice fence separated each lane making it much easier for the drivers to remain in their designated lane. A locked door connected each lane and formed a path through the middle of the warehouse leading to Peabody’s office on the far side of the warehouse.

While technically not as mana efficient as just opening a portal between two places directly, Peabody was reasonably confident that the added insurance of the third location in between would heavily discourage any untoward misbehaviour.

As Peabody expected, Galacia had already begun booking a number of portals for immediate delivery of goods. Galacia also requested a meeting to discuss something ‘private’ in three days' time.

Accepting the request, Peabody returned to its usual duties, managing the Creator’s finances to pass the time until the appointed hour.

Using the Portal Generator located in the main office, Peabody connected the inactive portal anchor in the waiting room to the corresponding anchor in the waiting room of the warehouse office in Lyon city. Activating the connection, Peabody used spying artifices hidden in the waiting room to watch for Mrs. Galacia and her accompanying bodyguards.

Seeing Mrs. Galacia and a pair of tall heavily built men safely enter the waiting room, Peabody waited a few moments for any possible latecomers and then closed the portal.

Securing the Portal Generator back inside of its enchanted vault, Peabody then opened the door to the private office. “Mrs. Galacia! It is such a pleasure to see you! Please, come in, come in!” The golem stepped to the side of the door and motioned to the sofa and then to the table in the middle of the room. “I have laid out our refreshments if you are so inclined,” Peabody offered with a smile, following Mrs. Galacia and her guards before taking a seat in a nearby armchair.

Mrs. Galacia waved her hand dismissively before turning to one of her bodyguards, “The red ledger please, Piere.”

The guard nodded and removed a large red leather-bound ledger from a buckled satchel at his waist and then obediently offered it to Peabody.

Accepting the ledger, Peabody gave Mrs. Galacia a curious look before opening it, “And this is?” The golem began panning its eyes across the open pages and found neatly detailed rows of names, dates, and various denominations of coinage.

“A debtors ledger,” Mrs. Galacia replied with a small smile, “Specifically, the ledger contains a list of debts owed to my family and our various businesses. It is only a copy, but I think it should prove sufficient to make my case.”

“Your case?” Peabody asked, quite intrigued by the older woman’s initiative. Carefully flipping through the pages and doing some rough maths revealed that there were approximately four thousand or so individual names listed in the ledger.

“I wish to become a prime member of the cabal and develop my own fief in the deadlands,” Mrs. Galacia clarified, her eyes burning with avaricious hunger. “The information packet stipulated that prime members of the cabal would be allowed the opportunity to develop a fief in the deadlands under His Majesty Farrus’ banner and warrant of crusade, correct?”

Peabody smiled and gently closed the debtors’ ledger. “That is indeed correct,” the golem agreed congenially, “The easiest defensible territories have already been assigned to my benefactor’s most prominent allies, but historical records are available to provide a more educated choice on locations that are otherwise rich in resources.”

The hunger in Mrs. Galacia’s eyes intensified.

“There are, of course, terms and conditions that accompany the allocation of a fiefdom,” Peabody warned while still maintaining its warm smile, “Most notably, you and your subjects would all be bound to the laws of His Majesty. Secondly, a staff of golems will be provided to serve as auditors for your fief. Lastly, you will only be permitted a territory of a size deemed appropriate for the number of subjects adequately housed and employed within your fief. Do you understand?”

Mrs. Galacia narrowed her eyes shrewdly and nodded, “Obeying the laws is a given, of course, and the golem auditors would presumably serve to keep the Lord's financial dealings appropriately honest. As for the last point, I can only assume it is to ensure that any lands taken from the monsters are also suitably manned to avoid losing territory to counter attacks.”

“That, and to alleviate the issues caused by unemployment and homelessness,” Peabody added while folding its fingers atop the ledger. “Depending on the territory chosen, existing fortifications or cities in the vicinity may provide a solid foundation for developing a core population of subjects and a strong base of operations for armed forces clearing the deadlands. Which is another point I would like to raise. Any mercenaries you wish to employ and operate within the deadlands must first undergo a rigorous background check and equipment refit,” Peabody preemptively raised a hand placatingly, “This is to ensure that they are up to the task of hunting monsters as well as ensuring that their loyalties are not beholden to our enemies. I hope you agree that it is reasonable.”

Mrs. Galacia nodded and furrowed her brow slightly, “What about accepting mercenaries as subjects? Taking them on as full-time soldiers.”

“Provided they pass the initial background check, then the burden of ensuring their equipment is suitably maintained is yours. However, I would be remiss if I did not point out the cause for this requirement. As perhaps you may or may not have heard, His Majesty has developed a rather unique enchantment for slaying monsters. As such, he requires that this enchantment, and basic protection enchantments, be borne by all equipment of those intending to fight monsters.” Peabody chuckled a little and raised his hand again as Mrs. Galacia began to scowl, “The enchantments are provided free of charge, although the baubles for storing small reserves of mana would be your expense if you desire to collect and sell the mana for a profit.”

“Storing mana?” Mrs. Galacia’s eyes widened in surprise, “So the rumours were true?” She muttered quietly.

“Your fiefdom will also entitle you, and your family, permission to purchase specialised artifices designed for amplifying both defensive and offensive efforts against monsters and men alike.” Peabody grew more serious for a moment, “Although I must add that you would be forbidden from using such artifices against other subjects of His Majesty or those of foreign realms without His Majesty’s permission.”

No doubt having heard rumours of the A`Ws and A`Ps from merchants contracted to trade in Arngier, Mrs. Galacia’s eyes grew wider still. “How much do I need to pay to gain prime membership and my own fief?” The older woman asked determinedly, clutching at the folds of her dress so tightly that her knuckles turned white.

“It is not a matter of payment, per se,” Peabody corrected reassuringly while tenting its fingers in front of its chest, “There are two primary requirements, and both relate to available manpower. As I mentioned earlier, you will need an armed force to both protect your fief from monsters as well as claim territory from the surrounding area. The auditors assigned to your fief will not register an expansion in your territory unless it is properly fortified and has enough soldiers and materials to hold it. This returns to the number of colonists required to theoretically support those soldiers through trade and production of foodstuffs.” Peabody untented its fingers and leaned forward, “In terms of raw numerical requirements, you will need at least ten thousand confirmed colonists to serve as your subjects. One adult in twenty is required to pass at least basic militia level combat training, and one in fifty must reach a professional standard. Hiring mercenaries provides a quick qualification for the required combat standards and recruiting debtors and their families provide the required minimum number of colonists. Assuming the debtors agree and the mercenaries pass scrutiny, of course.” Peabody sighed and sat back in its seat, “Theoretically, if you are truly serious about this, you could be overseeing the growth of your fief within the week,” Peabody grinned and clasped its fingers together over its padded stomach.

Mrs. Galacia’s hands began to tremble, “I!..Ahem, excuse me,” she blushed slightly at her unintentional loss of decorum, “I have a contracted mercenary company that is responsible for protecting my waggons and warehouses,” Mrs. Galacia leaned slightly forwards and made a real effort to not look desperate, “The Silver Shields is the name of the company, perhaps you know of them?”

Peabody nodded and motioned for her to continue.

“Well, their leadership primarily recruits former soldiers and guardsmen,” Mrs. Galacia explained carefully, “Does that qualify as the required professional standard? Or is it only a militia level standard?”

Peabody remained silent for a moment as the golem feigned consideration for the question. “I will need to have their standards assessed to be certain, but the records of the Silver Shields look encouraging.”

Mrs Galacia seemed profoundly relieved and released a quiet and nearly inaudible sigh. “I am confident the debtors and their families can be convinced to join as colonists and my future subjects. Preliminary approaches made by my agents have revealed a certain amount of hesitation given the reputation of the deadlands, but your signing bonus combined with the forgiveness of debts seems to be very difficult to pass up.”

Peabody nodded and smiled conceitedly, “That is why I framed the offer as such.”

“Quite,” Mrs. Galacia agreed with a smirk. “With that in consideration, would it be possible to review the resource map of the deadlands?” Despite her congenial tone, Mrs. Galacia’s eyes flashed possessively at the mention of resources.

Confident that the old merchant would remain true to her greed, Peabody smiled and directed her attention to the large quartzite panel on the wall. Activating the panel, Peabody brought a detailed map of the deadlands into focus, with the already claimed territories greyed out but not listing to whom they belonged.

In addition to the resources, fallen cities and towns, and general topography, the map also showed the current progress of the Creator’s forces. With the entirety of the great valley walled off, it certainly made the Creator’s progress seem greater than it actually was. After all, the great valley was currently uninhabited besides the barracks assigned to guarding each end.

After allowing Mrs. Galacia and her guards' free exploration of the map, Peabody decided to see which territories had taken her interest. “Do you have a particular territory in mind?” Peabody asked,

Mrs. Galacia nodded and pointed to two different cities in turn, “Totten is quite tempting,” she admitted with a wistful sigh, pointing to a city near the centre of the deadlands, “But so close to the old capital, it is almost certainly overrun by high-level dungeons...” The city had three abandoned silver mines within striking distance, making it a very valuable target.

Peabody nodded and motioned for her to continue.

“So I think Dewsbury is a safer option,” Mrs. Galacia sighed and pointed towards the mountain range near the coast and beside the already claimed territory of Jarl Sigrun. A nearby iron mine and marble quarry would prove worthwhile investments, and another developing territory nearby provided a potential ally to coordinate with for defence. “Do you have any thoughts?” She asked uncertainty, “I am not above taking risks, but I would prefer a corresponding payoff for the expenditure of effort and resources.”

Peabody smiled broadly and nodded enthusiastically, “Of course, speculation is one of my great passions!” Peabody already had a location in mind and was glad that Mrs. Galacia was open to suggestions. “Wigston is a fantastic investment opportunity!” Peabody moved the map with its fingers to centre it on the ruined city in question before magnifying the image. “As you can see, the ruined city of Wigston offers a nearby forest for timber, charcoal and wild game. It also has an ample supply of stone from the nearby mountains and a large vein of quartzite within a few days overland travel from the city. The old mine for the quartzite had barely begun excavation efforts according to available records, so the amount of raw quartzite remaining at the site is considerable.”

“Why quartzite?” Mrs. Galacia asked curiously. However, before Peabody had a chance to answer, her expression suddenly shifted from curiosity to one of understanding, “Artificing materials...”

Peabody nodded, “Precisely. Securing an independent internal supply of quartzite is a high priority of His Majesty. If you commit to claiming Wigston and the surrounding area as your territory, you will be entitled to a much greater level of support from His Majesty’s forces.”

Mrs. Galacia nodded and carefully regarded the map again. Wigston was located close to the southern mountain range separating the deadlands from the Southern Kingdom. While relatively resource-poor in comparison to what other locations had to offer besides wood and stone, Wigston would afford her comparatively unimpeded opportunities for expansion to the west and east, avoiding the higher level dungeons in the centre of the fallen kingdom.

“What support could I expect if I claimed a different location?” Mrs. Galacia asked thoughtfully.

“All nearby dungeons would be closed by His Majesty’s personal forces and the city would be purged of all monsters by golems. Before colonists are allowed to occupy the city, a monster detection artifice must be installed atop the tallest available tower or building. Lastly, enchanted ballista must similarly be installed atop high vantage points and the walls of the city, in case flying or large monsters attempt to attack the city.” Peabody listed the established procedures with practised ease, having decided upon them earlier that week.

Mrs. Galacia nodded and looked quite relieved, perhaps having thought her own mercenaries would need to deal with the dungeons. “And if I chose Wigston?”

Peabody smiled reassuringly and held his hands behind his back, “The same, with the additional support of clearing the dungeons from roughly five days travel by foot from the city in each direction and fortifying any towns within the said radius.”

Mrs. Galacia’s eyebrows momentarily rose in surprise before she hastily regained her composure, “I see...” She replied thoughtfully and reconsidered the map.

Wigston had three towns within the approximate range of the additional support, towns that could be used as forward bases for expansion, or early warnings in the event of invasion. The forests surrounding the towns could also be cut down and replaced with fields for producing food crops or raw materials for textiles.

“I think your advice is sound,” Mrs. Galacia agreed, “I will claim Wigston for my fief, assuming my qualification are completed before a rival claims it first,” she chuckled good-naturedly at the last and gave Peabody an optimistic smile.

After finalising the details, Peabody escorted Mrs. Galacia and her guards back to the portal in the waiting room before retreating to his office and preparing for the invasion of Wigston. Knowing it would take a team of golems roughly a week running across the hostile terrain to reach the city, Peabody decided to take a chance on using an Airboat instead.

Within the hour, a small team of golems departed from Arngier in an airboat headed for Wigston. With any luck, they would arrive ahead of Peabody’s expectations and allow the conquest of the city to begin that much sooner. With inevitable trade politics looming on the horizon, securing the independent supply of quartzite was an incredibly high priority.

With Mrs. Galacia’s permission, Peabody sent a small team of golems to Lyon city to secretly test the Silver Shields mercenary company. The nature of the testing would be done without the mercenaries' knowledge in order to secure a more reliable assessment of their capabilities. With the tests consisting of comparatively fair fights when the mercenaries were most prepared and tests when they were otherwise least expecting trouble, the golems responsible were instructed to be very thorough.

The first wave of Mrs. Galacia’s colonists began arriving the following morning in groups of roughly a hundred or so people at a time. Carrying what few belongings they owned, the bedraggled families were processed by a special team of golems in a separate space of the warehouse.

In addition, to cross confirming their identities, the golems provided each colonist with fresh changes of clothing, a haircut, the opportunity to wash in partitioned showers, and their promised signing bonus. When the colonists arrived at the new colony in the city of King’s Watch, they would be given the opportunity to learn the skills they would need in order to restore Wigston and other cities. At the very least, it would afford even those lacking a trade the opportunity to earn a living as semi-skilled labourers.

The orientation period in King’s Watch would also serve to acclimate the newcomers to the deadlands and help them overcome the bulk of their fears. The colonists would also have the opportunity to become more comfortable with the golems and commonplace appearance of the growing numbers of chimaeras.

With very little competition in her home city, Mrs. Galacia had a near complete monopoly over recruiting the poor, unemployed and debtors of Lyon and its surrounding townships. Judging by the sheer number of willing applicants being sent their way, it was obvious that she was making the most of it while she could.

Somewhat wary of the reaction local authorities may make to the sudden migration of so many people from their city, Peabody was relieved to find that the officials themselves seemed largely indifferent. This would likely change as the slums emptied and the sources of cheap labour dried up, but in the meantime, it gave the cabal free rein to recruit with impunity.

Mrs. Galacia had also taken Peabody’s suggestion and was buying out the debts owed to other independent loan providers. Combined with her recruitment efforts in the city slums, it resulted in a constant stream of colonists gathering in the Lyon warehouse and awaiting transportation.

Of course, a number of hardened criminals had attempted muscling in on activities, but the golems on guard duty were quick to brutally put down anyone that threatened the recruited colonists. Far from a surprise, Peabody had expected as much when assigning a signing bonus as part of the deal for the colonists. It was only natural that people would talk and that less than savoury individuals would try to steal the coins through one means or another.

Attempted escalation from the gangs only resulted in more of their members being brutally beaten and somewhat ironically increasing the number of applicants wanting to become colonists.

Unfortunately, recruiting from the slums had another expected but undesirable issue that needed to be dealt with, addicts. The various gangs' motivations for attacking the colonists were not just for the rumoured coins they would be holding as a signing bonus, but because a number of the fleeing colonists were former customers.

The best Peabody could offer the addicts was a rehabilitation program overseen by golem caretakers that would ween the addicts off the less debilitating drugs. Anyone addicted to the more debilitating substances would need to be taken into a hospice in Arngier for long term care as the golems forced the addict to combat their addiction head-on.

While investing in the addicts was something of a loss, the provided care and treatment was definitely a contributing factor for their family members becoming colonists. The fact that most addicts could be rehabilitated and later enter employment also meant that the loss would likely be offset in the long term.

Peabody was drawn from its musings as an alert from the scouting team aboard the airboat declared their arrival atop an old bell tower in the ruins of Wigston city. Images accompanying the message revealed a large number of monsters roaming the streets below and a small number of flying monsters in the distance.

Giving the team of golems the order to standby, Peabody contacted central military command and confirmed the requisition for an invasion force of golems to take the city and purge the monsters.

With the dungeons only located outside of the city walls, seizing the city would give the mercenaries and chimaeras a substantial advantage when approaching the dungeons to imprison the cores. It would also give them a place to retreat if the dungeon proved beyond their capabilities.

Thus far, the mobile ballista on the A`Ws had proven sufficient to defeat a level seventy-four dungeon, the highest on record during their crusade. Overwhelming volleys of enchanted javelins seemed just about capable of defeating anything the dungeons could throw at them. However, the A`Ws performed best when supported by the P`As, which served as bright torches drawing the monsters in like moths and blinding them to the threat of the mobile ballistae.

With the homing beacon in place, the golems began the invasion of Wigston in force. The initial purge would be conducted on foot, using repeating crossbows and melee weapons to cull the monsters on the streets and draw them out from the buildings. After the streets were cleared, a monster detection artifice would be deployed on the belltower and ballista would be mounted on the walls while gates and breaches in the walls were temporarily blockaded. Only then would the purge begin in earnest, golems thoroughly sweeping the city building by building in search of hiding monsters. The sewers in particular would require thorough searching and the drains leading outside the city would need to be refortified and enchanted.

Curious to see the events unfolding for itself, Peabody opened a portal to Arngier and then stepped through the heavily guarded portal to Wigston.

As Peabody had expected, the fighting was fierce but largely one-sided. The combination of overwhelming ballistic support from the repeating crossbows and the golems' brute strength cut swathes through the hordes of monsters now flooding the streets.

Dozens of Mana Storage Crystals were deployed in the vicinity of the portal, serving as an impromptu recharge station for the small army of golems purging the city. Every fifth golem would be carrying a Mana Storage Crystal to relay mana to golems that needed it and transfer excess into available Mana Storage Crystals by the portal.

Contrary to Peabody’s original expectations, a number of golems had begun deploying slimes into the streets and through available storm drains into the sewers. No doubt an experiment being conducted by the Creator, Peabody decided to just watch and see what would happen.

Although the slimes were mostly out of sight in the sewers, Peabody was surprised and quite impressed by how aggressively the slimes began pursuing and attacking the monsters.

Of a similar size to the slimes deployed in the sewers of Endem, this more aggressive breed of slime was semi-ovoid and attacked with tendrils that sought to envelop or otherwise engulf its prey.

Nearly ten feet in diameter, the slimes would try to roll over nearby monsters with every opportunity, their touch dissolving flesh and bone in mere seconds.

Capable of seeing what was truly happening, Peabody smiled and nodded at the genius of the Creator’s experiment. The slimes embodied the same mana-draining enchantment used on the golems' weapons, making it a near-impossible opponent for the monsters to face. Any attempts at attacking the slime directly would only feed it more mana to repair itself with, rewarding the slime's aggression in a similar fashion.

The use of the slimes also had the unexpected benefit of cleaning the city, absorbing and digesting organic matter as they undulated over the cracked flagstones and squeezed through buildings.

Watching the slimes at work also served to give Peabody inspiration for improving its disguise. Eating and drinking to maintain appearances were currently accommodated by a false stomach attached to the golem’s throat. Peabody had already petitioned for and received a sense of taste and smell to better support its disguise, so Peabody was quite used to the idea of making improvements. In this particular instance, Peabody considered the viability of deploying a small slime in the false stomach to digest any food the golem consumed. A run-off tube with a stoppered end could be added in order to release the remaining liquid as well, functionally increasing Peabody's disguise yet again as the golem’s trips to relieve himself would gain some semblance of authenticity.

Distracted by the prospects of improving its disguise, Peabody didn’t notice the beating of wings until a distant screeching roar demanded the golem’s attention.

Looking to the sky, Peabody saw a true dragon lazily flying towards the city. With an almost serpentine body and lithe fore and hind limbs, the dragon somewhat resembled a wyvern but was considerably larger. Only found within the highest level dungeons, it was incredibly poor luck to find one that had strayed so far from its home.

As much of a potential that the dragon's arrival presented, Peabody couldn’t help but realise it also presented a rare and commensurately valuable opportunity as well.

[Peabody; “Debilitate and incapacitate the dragon, but do not kill it until a thorough scan of its body has been completed!”]

The order brought about an immediate shift in tactics from the other golems. Those armed with repeating crossbows began climbing to higher ground on top of buildings to secure better lines of sight on the approaching dragon. Repeating ballistae were brought through the portal and deployed on the rooftops of the most structurally sound buildings and in already cleared open spaces.

Seemingly oblivious to the danger, the dragon continued its arrogant approach to the city. Making no attempts to hide its presence, the dragon went so far as to avoid any possible cloud cover that might obstruct the golem’s view, prominently displaying its crimson scales in the sunlight.

The dragon descended, most likely intending to strafe the city with some form of breath attack, swelling its chest and rearing back its head on its long sinewy neck. However, instead of releasing billowing flames, gouts of gas or even arcs of lightning, the dragon instead elected to release a deafening roar.

Loud enough that it probably would have ruptured the eardrums and permanently deafened any humans present, Peabody and the other golems were unaffected and completely unfazed by the auditory assault. The dragon’s roar was cut short and devolved into a protracted hissing howl of pain as enchanted bolts and javelins impaled its relatively vulnerable underbelly.

Apparently too crippled by pain to properly adjust its course, the dragon failed to correct its course and crashed into the mountainside behind the city.

[Peabody: “Ten crossbowmen follow me! We must scan the dragon before it expires!”]

Without looking to confirm if the command was being followed, Peabody leapt up onto a nearby rooftop and began leaping from roof to roof like a large toad. While somewhat embarrassing, the unique method of traversing the ruins of the city kept Peabody out of reach of the monsters on the street.

Having originally intended to just observe events firsthand, Peabody had no weapons besides its own body. Although fully capable of delivering lethal blows with just its fists or feet, Peabody was loath to do so. Attacking unarmed was incredibly inefficient and would deplete close to twice as much mana compared to using even an improvised weapon.

All the same, Peabody did its best to traverse the city as fast as possible and make its way to the fallen dragon.

The majority of monsters milling about the city and swarming towards the golem army were bestial and savage humanoids. Peabody recognised powerful monsters like minotaurs and even hulking ettins amongst their ranks. Although not as powerful as a dragon, the monsters were typically found within level seventy dungeons and are impervious to unenchanted weapons and crushed unenchanted plate armour like paper.

Dungeons containing these monsters and others that would begin plaguing the more populated cities of the world in ever-growing numbers in the coming months. Attrition would see the strongest adventurers of each realm succumb to fatigue attempting to keep up with the accelerating pace of dungeon appearances, inevitably resulting in casualties.

By the time a state of emergency was declared, it would be too late. The dungeons will have become too numerous and entrenched, besieging every city and town simultaneously. With the more powerful monsters immune or heavily resistant to unenchanted arms, the siege would be unrelenting and inevitably see the gates fall and monsters rampaging through the streets.

Then there would be instances of monsters like the dragon assaulting cities on their own, striking with impunity before retreating for a time and striking again.

As callous as Peabody’s plans for the world and its people were, the golem would not allow such prodigious waste and loss of life without challenge. Arming the forces of their competition was entirely unacceptable. Intervening with ground troops alongside said rivals was just as unacceptable.

However, deploying loyal flying warbeasts to specifically target those spawned by the dungeon and keep civilian losses to a minimum? That was something Peabody could support, and what better warbeast was there than a dragon?

All Peabody had to do now was scan the fallen dragon and convince their prisoner Cara to share her knowledge on constructing Guardians...